Blood Enemy
Blood Enemy is a non-canon prequel to the ''Underworld'' series before the events of Underworld and Underworld: Evolution. It is written by Greg Cox, who also wrote the novelizations for Underworld, Underworld: Evolution and Underworld: Rise of the Lycans. Notably, Blood Enemy directly contradicts Underworld: Rise of the Lycans and parts of Underworld and Underworld: Evolution. Blood Enemy was released on . Synopsis Blood Enemy contains the dual stories of Selene and Sonja, taking place in two different time periods. After the Lycan slave Lucian saves Vampire princess Sonja's life from an attack by mortals while traveling to Marcus Corvinus's castle to attend her father Viktor's Awakening, the two begin to fall in love. They begin exchanging secret notes in the palace by using Grushenka, a Lycan laundress, as a middleman. At the time, Sonja is engaged to Nicolae, the son of Vampire Elder Marcus Corvinus. Because Vampires are forbidden to mingle with Lycans, she and Lucian make plans to run away together after Sonja discovers she is pregnant with Lucian's child. Just as they are about to leave, however, Viktor discovers the pregnancy thanks to the treachery of Lycan servant Leyba, and has Sonja burned alive while Lucian watches. Lucian then uses the full moon to shift into his wolf form, and steals Sonja's pendant before fleeing the castle. Leyba approaches Viktor for recognition in her role in exposing Sonja and Lucian's tryst, only for Viktor to burn her alive and throw her out of the castle, Leyba subsequently falling several hundred feet to the lake below. During this time, Viktor ignores and belittles two power-hungry Vampires named Kraven and Soren, who team up against Viktor by forming an alliance with Lucian. After Lucian kills Nicolae and becomes the first Lycan to be able to shift form at will, he arranges to fake his own death, giving Kraven power and glory in the Vampire clan. Kraven cuts the branded skin from Lucian's arm and then returns to Viktor, claiming to have killed the Lycan leader. During this time, Lucian burns down his fortress and disappears for the next 600 years. Shortly before the events of the first film, Lucian is abducted by Leyba, who was presumed dead after Viktor set her on fire out of anger over Sonja's affair with Lucian. Leyba attempts to torture him in revenge for triggering the war by choosing Sonja over herself, only to be killed by Selene after the Death Dealer witnesses Leyba in action and tracks her to her base. Despite confronting Leyba, Selene remains unaware of the true story of Sonja and of the fact that Lucian is still alive. Differences from canon * While Sonja is a dark-haired Death Dealer in Rise of the Lycans, Blood Enemy describes her as a fair-haired princess. This is linked to Sonja's blonde appearance in the original Underworld. * While Evolution and Rise of the Lycans reveal that there was an original breed of Werewolves unable to change shape, with only the second generation Lycans assuming human form, Blood Enemy states that Lycans are humans who transform only at the full moon. * Blood Enemy names Lucian as the first Lycan to change shape at will when fighting Nicolae, while Rise of the Lycans makes him the first naturally-born Lycan - born as a human to his wolf parents and capable of changing shape at will - although both cases give him a prominent position among Lycans. * Lucian is born in captivity in Rise of the Lycans, while Blood Enemy has him reveal that his parents were wild Lycans, with Lucian being captured in the same raid that resulted in their deaths when he was very young. * No reference is made to the vendetta between Viktor and Marcus, Marcus even treating Viktor with sympathy upon his Awakening when telling Viktor of the recent death of his wife. * Lucian is a blacksmith in the film, while Blood Enemy has him as reeve to the Vampire's Lycan servants. * No reference is made to Raze in Blood Enemy, while Rise of the Lycans shows he and Lucian meeting shortly before Lucian began his campaign against the Vampires, while Raze was still human. * Blood Enemy places the time of Sonja's death in the year 1202. This date directly conflicts with Underworld, Underworld: Evolution and Underworld: Rise of the Lycans, all of which put her death in the 1400s, with the Underworld novel specifically stating it as the year 1402. * Sonja is said to be engaged to Marcus's son, Nicolae, in Blood Enemy, however, no mention is ever made in any of the films of Marcus having any children, and Sonja is shown to not be engaged to anyone in Underworld: Rise of the Lycans. * While Evolution states that Vampires are unable to consume food other than blood without feeling sick, Blood Enemy includes a scene set around a feast, stating that Vampires can eat mortal food as an indulgence even if they gain no real sustenance for it. Some of the foods, such as jelly, were mixed with blood. Trivia * In the acknowledgments at the back of the book, Greg Cox gives special thanks to Underworld co-creator Danny McBride for "generously Greg Cox to pick his brains regarding obscure points of Underworld lore". es:Blood Enemy fr:Blood Enemy Category:Blood Enemy Category:Novels